Spending divides new Volusia council

Published: Thursday, January 10, 2013 at 6:19 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, January 10, 2013 at 11:48 p.m.

The first two spending tests for the new Volusia County Council involved about $50,000 in decisions Thursday that didn't resolve themselves unanimously.

First came $20,000 — money for the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce to attract a second annual softball event starring Major League Baseball players at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

Then came $30,000 — money to sponsor more than 20 organizations around the county like Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida, the Council on Aging and the Halifax Health Foundation.

Considering the council also agreed Thursday that it couldn't afford pay raises for its employees, some members weren't thrilled about spending the money.

Two new members, County Chair Jason Davis and District 1 representative Pat Patterson, said they couldn't support the first issue — the softball money.

"I'm struggling with this," Patterson said. "I think maybe all the chambers should be involved in it, and maybe they should be putting up the money. I really can't support the $20,000."

"It's not a giveaway, it's an investment," District 2 Councilman Josh Wagner argued, "and I see it as a very wise investment."

The softball event is Brawl at the Beach, a tournament and home-run derby held in December. Its big draw was St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, along with his brothers Bengie and Jose and others. The event was a fundraiser for Molina's Foundation 4 charity.

But it didn't raise as much money as hoped. The event was advertised over only a few weeks, and chamber president Larry McKinney said even if people saw the advertising, many didn't believe pro players would come to Daytona. They were partly right; originally, the event was advertised to feature former Cardinal Albert Pujols (who had surgery), and current Cardinals Carlos Beltran, Rafael Furcal and Jon Jay. Those players didn't show.

About 900 people bought tickets to the event, while the chamber had set a goal of 2,400. Afterward, the chamber was about to send Foundation 4 a check for $3,800, well short of what McKinney said would bring the event back to Daytona in future years.

The county's extra $20,000 will make up that shortfall.

One person in the audience was vehemently against it. After McKinney displayed a brief Powerpoint presentation on the event, Morton Culligan of DeBary came to the podium waving his tax bill, saying, "This is my Powerpoint."

"Nonprofit organizations don't get these," he said of the bill. "They don't pay taxes, and a lot of taxpayers are sick of paying their bills . . . Is the government in the baseball business?

"Voting for these worthless extravagances is an insult to the taxpayer and a disgrace to the community," Culligan said. "I ask you to stand for the taxpayers and against the tax takers."

McKinney said the chamber will be raising more private money this year than last because it has several more months to do it. He promised he wouldn't be back asking for more money in the future. (By way of full disclosure, The News-Journal is a private sponsor of the event.)

The $20,000 amount was within the spending limit County Manager Jim Dinneen could've authorized without council approval, but he said he brought it for a vote because it's a policy decision.

"I don't use that kind of authority when I think it's a policy call by the council," he said. "This isn't me buying a widget."

But he also said the idea fit with the council's recent emphasis on building sports as a tourism and economic generator. In addition to future softball events, Molina is opening "Molina Impact Training" in an 8,000-square-foot space in Port Orange, with three employees and future expansions planned in Florida, McKinney said.

"To me, when they said they were going to bring the jobs on top of the event, (a financial incentive) is in keeping with what the council's done for years," Dinneen said.

Davis, before his no vote, asked McKinney for an analysis of how much money the event generated for Volusia, but the chamber hasn't done one.

McKinney said next year's event could feature "10 or 11 of the top names in baseball in the country," including one recently retired future Hall of Famer who's from Volusia County. But he didn't identify former Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones by name.

Later, when the council discussed $30,000 in sponsorship for organizations around Volusia, Patterson said he couldn't support that spending, either. And citizen Culligan was back at the podium, asking the council to keep organizations' hands out of taxpayers' pockets. He suggested anyone who wants county money should pay a $1,000 fee to apply.

"It just does sound a little hypocritical of us to spend this money," Davis said, considering the lack of pay raises. Wagner, while he said he agreed that employees deserved more pay, said the pay issue shouldn't influence every vote.

"I don't want this raise thing to keep getting thrown in our face," Wagner said. "This is a separate issue . . . We're supporting organizations so we don't have to provide a service that a lot of them are doing."

The council then agreed to pay sponsorships for events that have already happened, and table the rest until after a workshop on the funding.

<p>The first two spending tests for the new Volusia County Council involved about $50,000 in decisions Thursday that didn't resolve themselves unanimously. </p><p>First came $20,000 &mdash; money for the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce to attract a second annual softball event starring Major League Baseball players at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. </p><p>Then came $30,000 &mdash; money to sponsor more than 20 organizations around the county like Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida, the Council on Aging and the Halifax Health Foundation. </p><p>Considering the council also agreed Thursday that it couldn't afford pay raises for its employees, some members weren't thrilled about spending the money. </p><p>Two new members, County Chair Jason Davis and District 1 representative Pat Patterson, said they couldn't support the first issue &mdash; the softball money. </p><p>"I'm struggling with this," Patterson said. "I think maybe all the chambers should be involved in it, and maybe they should be putting up the money. I really can't support the $20,000." </p><p>"It's not a giveaway, it's an investment," District 2 Councilman Josh Wagner argued, "and I see it as a very wise investment." </p><p>The softball event is Brawl at the Beach, a tournament and home-run derby held in December. Its big draw was St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, along with his brothers Bengie and Jose and others. The event was a fundraiser for Molina's Foundation 4 charity. </p><p>But it didn't raise as much money as hoped. The event was advertised over only a few weeks, and chamber president Larry McKinney said even if people saw the advertising, many didn't believe pro players would come to Daytona. They were partly right; originally, the event was advertised to feature former Cardinal Albert Pujols (who had surgery), and current Cardinals Carlos Beltran, Rafael Furcal and Jon Jay. Those players didn't show. </p><p>About 900 people bought tickets to the event, while the chamber had set a goal of 2,400. Afterward, the chamber was about to send Foundation 4 a check for $3,800, well short of what McKinney said would bring the event back to Daytona in future years. </p><p>The county's extra $20,000 will make up that shortfall. </p><p>One person in the audience was vehemently against it. After McKinney displayed a brief Powerpoint presentation on the event, Morton Culligan of DeBary came to the podium waving his tax bill, saying, "This is my Powerpoint." </p><p>"Nonprofit organizations don't get these," he said of the bill. "They don't pay taxes, and a lot of taxpayers are sick of paying their bills . . . Is the government in the baseball business?</p><p>"Voting for these worthless extravagances is an insult to the taxpayer and a disgrace to the community," Culligan said. "I ask you to stand for the taxpayers and against the tax takers." </p><p>McKinney said the chamber will be raising more private money this year than last because it has several more months to do it. He promised he wouldn't be back asking for more money in the future. (By way of full disclosure, The News-Journal is a private sponsor of the event.) </p><p>The $20,000 amount was within the spending limit County Manager Jim Dinneen could've authorized without council approval, but he said he brought it for a vote because it's a policy decision. </p><p>"I don't use that kind of authority when I think it's a policy call by the council," he said. "This isn't me buying a widget." </p><p>But he also said the idea fit with the council's recent emphasis on building sports as a tourism and economic generator. In addition to future softball events, Molina is opening "Molina Impact Training" in an 8,000-square-foot space in Port Orange, with three employees and future expansions planned in Florida, McKinney said. </p><p>"To me, when they said they were going to bring the jobs on top of the event, (a financial incentive) is in keeping with what the council's done for years," Dinneen said. </p><p>Davis, before his no vote, asked McKinney for an analysis of how much money the event generated for Volusia, but the chamber hasn't done one. </p><p>McKinney said next year's event could feature "10 or 11 of the top names in baseball in the country," including one recently retired future Hall of Famer who's from Volusia County. But he didn't identify former Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones by name. </p><p>Later, when the council discussed $30,000 in sponsorship for organizations around Volusia, Patterson said he couldn't support that spending, either. And citizen Culligan was back at the podium, asking the council to keep organizations' hands out of taxpayers' pockets. He suggested anyone who wants county money should pay a $1,000 fee to apply. </p><p>"It just does sound a little hypocritical of us to spend this money," Davis said, considering the lack of pay raises. Wagner, while he said he agreed that employees deserved more pay, said the pay issue shouldn't influence every vote. </p><p>"I don't want this raise thing to keep getting thrown in our face," Wagner said. "This is a separate issue . . . We're supporting organizations so we don't have to provide a service that a lot of them are doing." </p><p>The council then agreed to pay sponsorships for events that have already happened, and table the rest until after a workshop on the funding.</p>